As the first of four massive instalments arrive of 5 Year Anniversary, it was time to catch some time with the label boss of NYC’s finest: Digital Terror about the staggered release of the album.
Hi Anthony pleased to meet you.
Hey Damian, good to meet you as well. Thanks for reaching out to us.
Going back, tell us why you started your label?
I started Digital Terror Records because of the great network of producers I began to build a relationship with during my DJ career. I would get some awesome tracks from guys that would never see the light of day.
It was also around the same time I started studying mixing and mastering and I wanted to help some of these up and comers get the most out of their production and give them a solid home to release their music.
I must also add that Lewis from Cygnus was a major player in motivating me to start our label when he launched his distribution company back in 2009. Without his assistance Digital Terror would not be what it is today…
So what was the exact type of D&B you dug that you wanted to rep, as it were?
We launched the label to be geared towards the darker side of jump up. Gritty aggressive tunes have always been my favorite. Over time we have opened up our spectrum and released tracks and albums of all different vibes. But I will always have a sweet spot for heavy basslines
What’s the scene like in the States, what goes down well and who are the people out in the clubs?
This is a complicated question to answer ha ha.
Ya see, the scene in the states is very divided.
You don’t get many ‘ravers’ at D&B events, and you dont get many D&B heads at raves. It’s almost like two different cultures. The same goes for our house music scene and hip hop scene which is considered more mainstream here. And the recent boom of the ‘EDM Festival’ scene has formed a huge younger generation of party goers.
There’s a lot of segregation but don’t get me wrong, they still have some raves or festivals with D&B stages and/or D&B headliners, but it’s still a much different vibe.
The D&B scene itself in my opinion has reach an all time high in NYC over the last few years due to the likes of BP2, Webster Hall, and Direct Drive for hosting a string of great events, along with a new crew of promoters called NYC Jump Up which recently proved they are a force to be reckoned with.
Although I’m happy to see where the D&B scene is now in New York, it is still and will probably always be considered ‘underground’ compared to other music scenes in the states.
On the streets do you see evidence of flyering?
It’s not often I see posters advertising D&B nights in the city, maybe for a few high end clubs like Webster Hall but that’s it. I still see people hand to hand flyering outside events all the time though that will never stop.
Nevertheless, we know how to party!
Now on to the 5 Year Anniversary comp: it’s a big project, can you break it down how it’s released?
Yeah man, this project has a lot of blood, sweat, and tears in it! We began building this album last year with the intent of just doing a few remixes of our best selling tunes.
But after a few months and having talks with different producers and seeing how many people wanted to be apart of it I picked 20 producers from around the world to remix 20 tunes off our back catalog.
Needless to say it was tough trying to get 20 guys on the same timeline ha ha…
But after the wheels started rolling I really liked the way things were coming together. With a project consisting of this many tracks, I really wanted to make sure each tune got its proper exposure so we decided to break the releases up into four EP samplers then re-releasing again as a whole LP.
The EP Samplers are scheduled to drop in stores two weeks apart from each other Sept 7th, Sept 21st, Oct 5th, and Oct 19th.
Then on Nov 9th we’ll drop the full album in its entirety…
So Rawtee, Voltage, Callide, can you talk about who’s on here and what to look out for in terms of remixes etc?
Ahh man to be honest everyone on this album deserves a mention!
Such a talented group of producers that I had the pleasure to work with. Everyone really put their unique edge on their remix.
On a side point what’s some advice you’d give to someone running/starting a label, especially as the digital age is full of piracy, people who rip off material.
One of the most important things I had to learn was that quality outlives quantity.
And not to be in this for the money! You’ve got to stay humble as well, nobody likes it when you project yourself as your the best, shhhh let the music do the talking! Basically be confident not cocky with your work.
And piracy as you mentioned, is a huge thing to deal with as a label owner in the digital age: when we first launched our label I would get so furious when I would find our releases on pirate sites. I spent a few years battling piracy for not just my label but a handful of others. But over time I’ve realized its such a hard fight to do alone and for minimal gain: there are and always will be leeches.
Nowadays we do have some good anti-piracy services like the one Cygnus offers which helps scan the net and keep your stuff off unwanted download sites. But ultimately again this is why I say don’t be in this just for the money, or you’ll be chasing pennies forever.
My last bit of advice I can give someone running a label or even to producers in general is; don’t reveal it until its ready! Its too often I see people post ‘works in progress’ or ideas for tracks with poor mixdowns. They are not thinking of the listeners that might NOT come back for another listen after you clean your stuff up.
Sometimes you only get one shot to make an impression!
Thanks, any final shouts?
Awesome my pleasure! Def want to give a shout to Lewis and Callide over at Cygnus for all the hard work and assistance they have provided for me and the label. Shout out to each and every producer we have ever worked with over the last five plus years.
Huge shout out to you guys over at DNBA for being pioneers in the scene. And the biggest shout out to all the DJs and fans that support our label!